844 days, 20,256 hours, 1,215,360 minutes, or 72,921,600 seconds. That is the approximate duration of my world tour. I never wanted it to end and now, in a manner of speaking, I suppose it never has to. If you wish to go by country do so by clicking on one above. They are numbered in the order I visited them, more or less. If you enjoy reading about it even a tenth as much as I enjoyed living it then you will not have wasted your time. Grab a refreshing beverage, settle in a comfortable chair, and make a journey across the world, experiencing it as I did. Then get off your ass and check it out for yourself. You're not getting any younger.

What Lies Beneath? (Tunis, Tunisia)

[Author's
Note: I arrived in Tunis on September 10th,
2010 and left two months later. The Arab
Spring began in Tunisia on December 18th,
2010, a day after the self-immolation of Mohamed
Bouazizi. I missed the festivities by about a month or so. Some
would say I dodged a bullet but I cannot help feeling like I missed
the boat. How often do you have the chance to watch history unfold
from the front row? It is interesting for me to go back and read
about my experiences at the time. Yes, I could almost taste
repression in the air but if you told me the powder keg was about to
ignite I would have been incredulous in the extreme. Yet, there it
was boiling just beneath the surface. Keep this in mind when reading
my Tunisia posts. It makes for a fascinating subtext.]

Sept
28th,
2010- I saw a man walking on the street wearing a t-shirt
pronouncing: I'm
drunk. She's fat. It's on.
Charming. Another chap was sporting a hat that read simply: Fuck
In The Box,
presented in the logo style of the fast food chain Jack In The Box. I
need one.

I
must admit that Tunisia has
captured my attention just as much for what it is as for what it is
not. The dynamics of Tunisian society are rather complex, starting
with its history and due in no small part to the throngs of
interlopers that have called modern day Tunisia home at one time or
another. The Phoenicians, Romans, Vandals, Berbers, Byzantines,
Turks, Arabs, Spaniards, and French have all left their mark. It can
be somewhat dizzying to keep track of all the influences.

First
you have the arrival of the Phoenicians that
eventually established ancient Carthage (now
a suburb of Tunis). Their defeat in Third
Punic War at
the hands of the Romans saw the end of the Carthaginian Empire and
their dominance over the western Mediterranean. Next came Roman
hegemony followed by a short period of control by the Vandals,
the rise of the Arabs,
a brief interval of Spanish dominance, the rise of the Ottoman
Empire,
the colonial French era, and finally independence. And don't forget
the Berbers that were here for the duration. Simple.

Nowadays,
most folks would define themselves as Arab and profess to be
followers of Islam (about
98% are Sunni Muslims). In light of this it may be somewhat
surprising to discover that there is a rather pungent air of
tolerance and understanding, at least in Tunis. How deep does mutual
acceptance go? From my stand point thus far it is difficult to draw
my own conclusion. I am not sure if professed tolerance masks
practical discrimination. I do know that there are small populations
of Jews (less than 1%) and Christians (about 1%) still living in the
country, mostly in the Tunis area if I am not mistaken. The island
of Djerba is
home to one of the oldest Jewish communities in the world (they've
been there for over 2,500 years) and is an important pilgrimage site.
Although there appears to be tolerance for Jews in general I am not
quite sure about people's attitude toward Israeli Jews in particular.
My intuition leads me to believe a fair amount of resentment
exists.The
government for its part has taken great pains to suppress religious
extremism and has shunned attempts to create any type of Islamic
theocracy. Islam is the official state religion and the president is
required to be a Muslim. However, from what I have heard and read
those individuals that are a bit 'too Muslim' (for lack for a better
phrase) may face discrimination and outright hostility from the
government sector. The wearing of Islamic headscarves (hijab)
by women in government offices is prohibited by law and they are
discouraged from wearing them in public. Police have been known to
harass men with beards and those with the distinctive calloused
prayer mark on the forehead (received from bowing one's head upon the
floor with vigor during prayer). One woman told me that men have been
arrested in the wee hours of the morning while on their way to the
mosque. And
how would one describe the government, politics, and all ancillary
topics? In the 54 years or so since independence Tunisia has had two
presidents. Two. That fact by itself speaks volumes. The first, Habib
Bourguiba (from
1957-87), was removed in a sort of 'medical coup'. In other words he
was declared too old and nutty to rule. Enter Zine
El Abidine Ben Ali,
(1987 - present) a former minister under Bourguiba. Although
considered to be a procedural democracy (by whom I am not sure
exactly) Tunisia is in reality an authoritative regime. One need only
highlight Ben Ali's absurd margin of victory in any of his reelection
bids to realize that Tunisia is about as democratic as I am Tunisian.
As one might expect the majority of parliament members hail from the
president's own party, the Constitutional Democratic Party (RCD).
Shocker. However, it is interesting to note that some 20% of the
parliament seats are held by women, a condition not so common in the
Arab world. Bourguiba went far in the way of promoting women's
rights, a fact cynics might say was merely a way of currying favor in
the West and that much of what he accomplished was cosmetic.

Nothing up my sleeve....

The
president is, for all intents and purposes, a dictator. The
parliament is of the rubber stamp variety. And the judiciary is free
to rule independently as long as its decisions coincide exactly with
the wishes of the executive branch, i.e. Ben Ali. Freedom of press is
non-existent, public criticism of the government not tolerated. Just
ask any number of journalists imprisoned over the years. You might
want to start with Fahem Boukadous. Fahem's life currently
sucks. He is languishing in a prison in the Gafsa province
of midwest Tunisia. His crime? Well, he was reporting on civil unrest
involving local mineworkers in the city of Redeyef for a
satellite TV network (El Hiwar Eltounsi). Reporters Without Borders
disclosed on July 28th,
2010 that Fahem suffered an asthma attack which nearly took his life.
At first he was denied medical care but eventually a doctor from the
local hospital did appear on scene to provide life-saving care. It is
unlikely he will survive the length of his prison term. Want to know
more? Try the BBC, Amnesty
International, North-Africa.com, middleeast.about.com, YouTube,
or a blogger by the name of Robert
Prince.

[Author's
Note: Oh, what a difference a year makes! Fahem, along with many
other political prisoners, were eventually freed
by the post-revolution provisional government. ]Censorship
is widespread. Many sites on the web are blocked to include almost
every link I have provided in the preceding paragraph. Strangely,
the blog by Mr. Prince, a senior lecturer in International Studies
at the University of Denver, is accessible. My only explanation
is that perhaps his Jewishness is perceived as being fatal
for his credibility with Tunisians that may come across his blog. Can
you say vast Jewish conspiracy? I could be mistaken but as his site
comes up on the first page of a 'Fahem' search I find it difficult to
believe it was overlooked.Wikipedia
pages like 'Tunisia' and 'Ben Ali', websites mentioning Fahem,
all things porn , and all of YouTube (footage of the protest in Gafsa
was posted) are just a few of the vanquished. And yes, it is quite
feasible that my blog may fall victim, assuming they actually find it
(Good luck!). I suppose being deported is not altogether out of the
question as well. Fun.

I
will give them points for subterfuge. When attempting to reach a
restricted site the page appears as a broken link or presented as a
'404 Not Found' message. Both are forgeries placed there by
government censors. This draws less suspicion then a simple 'this
page is blocked' message I suppose. Bravo. This
is not to say that any of this is readily discernible (at
least on the streets of Tunis). The majority of tourists that shuffle
through the medina are blissfully unaware of the circumstances. It is
unlikely that causal observation and light banter with locals will
reveal the facade. Most of what I know I ascertained by scanning the
internet. In fact there is a rather tranquil and laid back air to
Tunisia's capital, as if all is right with the world. Indeed, for
many this appears to be true but then again ignorance is bliss. My
sense is that the one arena where dissatisfaction with the government
might appear is in the economic realm. Unemployment is especially
high here which would help to explain my pickpocket mishap on the
tram and why some unfortunates risk their lives trying to cross the
Mediterranean in small boats bound for Italy. However, in all
fairness Tunisia has one of the strongest economies in Africa and has
been the recipient of tons of foreign investment in recent years. It
is all a matter of perspective.

[Author's
Note: In light of what occurred just a couple of months after I left
the paragraph above is particularly salient. That 'tranquil and laid
back air' was clearly nearing its expiration date.]Although
many countries in the west condemn (in a low voice) the current
political and human rights situation in Tunisia little is done (in
the way of pressure) to reform its policies. Why? Well, I suppose it
is a 'lesser of two evils' type of rationality. Not only does the
authoritarian regime suppress basic human rights, it also suppresses
extremism. More democracy might result in the rise of fundamentalism
and, as the rational goes, 'terrorist' activity.

[Author's
Note: The experiment has begun. Will democracy give rise to
radicalism? Looks like we get to find out. How exciting is it that we
are actually watching it unfold at this very moment?]

“Never
doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can
change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever
has.”― Margaret Mead

************************

On a
lighter note I paid a visit to the Tourbet el-Bey, an Ottoman
mausoleum built during the reign of Ali Pasha II (1758-82). Inside
the mausoleum, located within the medina, you will find not so
recently departed beys, princes, princesses, ministers, trusted
advisers, and servants. The occupants are actually buried in the
ground; the decorative marble sarcophagi serving only to mark the
spot of burial.

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